Guys and Balls (2004)

After their most recent loss, a soccer team discovers its goalie is gay and casts him out. He retaliates by bringing back an all-gay team for a game to prove who's better.

Director:

Sherry Hormann

Writer:

Benedikt Gollhardt

Stars:

Maximilian Brückner, Lisa Maria Potthoff, Dietmar Bär

3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eileen Eilender	...	Susanne jung 1
Leon Breitenborn	...	Ecki jung 1
Dietmar Bär	...	Vater
Saskia Vester	...	Mutter
Anna Koesling	...	Susanne jung 2
Steven Wellmann	...	Ecki jung 2
Melody Sitta	...	Cordula jung
Jan Giffel	...	Udo jung
Maximilian Brückner	...	Ecki
Willi Thomczyk	...	Wirt
Jochen Stern	...	Rentner Rudi
Judith Hoersch	...	Cordula (as Judith Delphine Hoersch)
Carlo Ljubek	...	Udo
Mirko Lang	...	Tobias
Tobias van Dieken	...	Bernhard (as Tobias Vandieken)

Storyline

Fair-haired Ecki, the baker's son, has grown up the golden boy of his home town. All that changes the instant he and his soccer teammates discover he's gay. Now the object of scorn and ridicule (and finding himself unceremoniously kicked off his team), Ecki travels to the city of Dortmund to recruit an all-gay soccer team to return and prove to his town and his former soccer mates who the best men are. As first-time-out Ecki searches blindly through gay watering holes for players, his parents endure a rash of derisive gay jokes from the townies, leaving Ecki's gruff father to hope for a change in his son's orientation while also considering closing down the family business.

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Plot Keywords:

three word title | queer cinema | gay lead character | gay character | gay slur | 

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Taglines:

Jeder gibt sein bestes Stück. (Everyone gives his best part.)

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content, nudity and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Germany]

Country:

Germany

Language:

German English

Release Date:

7 October 2004 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Balls

Filming Locations:

Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,425, 30 April 2006, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$28,194, 4 June 2006

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen,FilmFernsehFonds Bayern,Filmförderungsanstalt (FFA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min 102 min (DVD)

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Goofs

When Ecki leaves home by bus he sits alone in the last row. When the bus overtakes a tractor the bus is shown from behind and one can see other people sitting in the last row.

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Quotes

Udo: Send her over! It's about time she got tamed by a real man!
Ecki: So she can bite your other ear? At least you'd be symmetrical then, Spock!

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Crazy Credits

In the ending credits, each actor's name is placed on the soccer grid where his position was played in the movie.

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Connections

References Bend It Like Beckham (2002)

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Soundtracks

Stranger
Performed by Miles

User Reviews

Cliché'd? yes. Good? YESSS!!!!

Sure, this movie follows a formula, actually many formulas, about gay vs. straight flicks, soccer flicks, sports hero flicks, guy gets the guy flicks - but it does them all VERY well and with both love and humour. Although there is every cliché in the book here about masculinity and coming out, there is an equal emphasis on NON-stereotypical gay men. Ercin the Turkish player is as nelly as they come but hey, he's a Turk represented in a German soccer flick, AND his Dad is obviously 100% supportive and proud of him, fluffy hand-gestures and all. Hotte may be a stereotypical leather guy, but he's also a juggernaut on the field who strikes terror in his opponents. Our hero is so gosh-golly "straight-looking" that I had trouble believing in him as a gay guy in the opening sequence, but his dalliances with Sven change all that. I've been out since 1979 and have seen ALL the big- name "gay" movies. Some good, some downright awful. This one felt real, was engaging from the outset and made me laugh, good hearty belly-laughs, from end to end. I loved it. You will too.